Heathrow passenger numbers keep beating records

Sky's the limit: last month was the busiest on record at Heathrow although freight volumes slipped back

11 April 2012

Heathrow enjoyed its third consecutive month of record passenger numbers last month, but freight volumes suffered from the stuttering economic recovery.

Airport operator BAA said 6.1 million passengers travelled through Heathrow in June, 6.3% more than the same month a year earlier.

That made June the London airport's busiest on record, although its comparative figure was partly due to British Airways strikes hitting traffic last year. Without that impact, Heathrow's growth was up 3.8% on the year.

However, BAA added: "In contrast to the rise in passenger numbers, growth in the global air freight market continued to slow as the strong post-recession recovery phase comes to an end."

Cargo traffic at BAA's airports last month fell 1.5% on last year, and 20% on June 2009. The airports group, owned by Spain's Ferrovial, also admitted its other London airport, Stansted, is continuing to see declining passenger numbers.

They dropped 3.3% to 1.7 million last month, which is bad timing as the Competition Commission is expected to publish a report next week ordering BAA to sell the airport. BAA has failed to overturn the decision in a series of lawsuits.

Elsewhere, Gatwick airport's owner Global Infrastructure Partners said it too enjoyed a 5.2% rise in passenger numbers to 3.2 million last month.